"Yesterday afternoon, late, General
Wheeler and staff arrived and established his headquarters within the
limits of my command. Saw him after dark. Late last night Colonel
Wood's regiment of dismounted cavalry (Rough Riders) passed through my
camp at Division Headquarters, and later General Young, with some of
the dismounted Cavalry, and early this morning others of the
dismounted cavalry." Wheeler says that "in obedience to instructions
from the Major-General Commanding," given to him in person, he
proceeded, on June 23rd, to Siboney, but does not say at what hour. He
says he "rode out to the front and found that the enemy had halted and
established themselves at a point about three miles from Siboney." He
then informs us that "at 8 o'clock on that evening of the 23rd General
Young reached Siboney with eight troops of Colonel Wood's regiment (A,
B, D, E, F, G, K and L), 500 strong; Troops A, B, G and K, of the
First Cavalry, in all 244, and Troops A, B, E and I, of the Tenth
Cavalry, in all 220 men, making a total force of 964 men, which
included nearly all of my command which had disembarked. These troops
had marched from Daiquiri, 11 miles. With the assistance of General
Castillo a rough map of the country was prepared and the position of
the enemy fully explained, and I determined to make an attack."
Lieutenant Miley says that the whole brigade of Wheeler's troops
arrived in Siboney about dark and were occupying the same ground as
General Lawton ("In Cuba With Shafter," p. 76.) General Young says
that after reporting to General Wheeler he "asked and obtained from
General Wheeler authority to make a reconnoisance in force" for the
purpose of obtaining "positive information * * * as to the position
and movements of the enemy in front."

The distance from Daiquiri to Siboney was but eleven miles, and as the
troops left the former place at 4.30 it is probable that they were all
bivouacked near Siboney before 9 o'clock, as they were all together,
according to General Wheeler's report, at 5.45 on the morning of the
24th. General Young having discovered that there were two roads or
trails leading from Siboney northward toward the town of Sevilla
determined to make his reconnoisance by both these trails. He directed
Colonel Wood to move by the western trail and to keep a careful
lookout and to attack any Spaniards he might encounter, being careful
to join his right in the event of an engagement, with the left of the
column